Tears of the Gods by Miranda-sama
Tears of the Underworld
I do not own Inu Yasha and the original Characters from the story.
Youkai - demon
Miko - priestess
Onii-san - brother
seiza - The japanese style of proper sitting
This is the first story I am posting here. I hope you enjoy reading it.
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CHAPTER ONE - Tears of the Underworld
Darkness surrounded the lone wanderer as he walked silently through the woods. His cold, golden eyes set hard on a destination. His silver hair swaying softly behind in the light breeze and illuminating the darkness around him. He clenched his hand around the hilt of his sword tightly, almost drawing blood with his razor-sharp claws. On the outside he seemed calm and collected, a silent predator. But his insides boiled. He was angry. Furious. And it showed in his dark aura, making all the small creatures in his vicinity run for their lives.
The pain in his side made him betray his cool demeanor. He winced and stopped as more blood escaped his wound. The last battle took him by surprise. He believed that after the battle with Naraku there was no opponent that could be of interest to him. Not that the Hanyou had been a threat, per see, but he was an annoying pain in his side. Just like his wound.
But apparently someone new appeared to annoy him. A seemingly weak and unimportant cat youkai he had never met or heard of before. But a clever one, he had to admit. He seemed to use some sort of spell that affected Sesshoumaru’s senses, but only slightly. That he actually managed to hurt him in battle was only because Sesshoumaru was too preoccupied with thoughts of his lands and what to do with them at that moment, that he failed to notice this knew threat.
He could have laughed at this seemingly powerless creature that appeared out of nowhere and demanded of him, him– the lord of the Western Lands- to know the location of some objects. He clearly had better things to do than to engage in conversations with unimportant beings. He did not pay much attention to this vermin, but the mention of one particular object caught his attention because he knew what it was and where to find it. It was a stone with the power to open the gate to hell.
He asked about the Meidou Stone that was in possession of his mother. That finally got his attention and made him notice the youkai, but before he could question this dubious creature, he lost his senses and got attacked. When he tried to dispose of him he was already gone. This annoyed Sesshoumaru to no end. How could he dare to leave him before this battle was finished?! Now he had to lose precious time to find this creature and end its miserable life.
How annoying. Really.
The best way to find out the cat youkai’s identity would be his mother. Not many people knew of the Meidou Stone’s existence, at least not many that were still walking the realm of the living. So, his mother should know who possessed such knowledge and could possibly seek her Meidou Stone.
Straightening again, he proceeded to walk toward his destination. His mother’s castle. Silently, he moved through the dark woods in the direction of the castle in the sky. His wound would heal within the next two days if he saved energy and walked most of the way. So, he walked on until he caught a familiar scent in the air.
He sniffed again to confirm what he smelled. Wondering what she was doing out here on her own, he turned towards the fresh scent that reminded him of sakura blossoms and walked into a fire-lit camp shortly afterwards. His eyes wandered to the woman sleeping peacefully next to the fire in her strange sleeping bag. Alone and with bow in hand.
Sesshoumaru frowned. Of what use was her weapon if she wasn’t able to sense a threat to herself?
There he stood, a predator, in the middle of the night only two feet away and all she did was roll onto the other side. His eyebrows twitched in annoyance.
“Miko”, he spoke evenly and waited, but no reaction came from the sleeping woman.
“Miko”, he repeated annoyed and poked her with his boot between her shoulder blades.
Now that got a reaction out of her.
Screaming, the woman tried to notch an arrow while jumping out of her bedding, but tripped over it in the process and fell on her behind, whispering curses and fumbling with her bow, trying again to shoot an arrow at him.
“Woman, stop this nonsense. If I wanted to kill you, I could have done so more than once without you noticing.”
The sound of his voice made her stop and look up at him. It took her few seconds to adjust her eyes in the dark enough to recognize the person in front of her.
“Sesshoumaru, what the hell! You nearly gave me a heart attack! What are you doing here anyway?”
He sneered at her comment.
“I could ask you the same, Miko. Why are you here on your own and where is your intended mate?”
Kagome blushed at the mention of Inu Yasha being her intended mate. It was only a few more weeks until their mating ceremony, to which Sesshoumaru as the last living part of Inu Yasha’s family had been invited.
After the final battle with Naraku things changed between them all. While Inu Yasha and Sesshoumaru still failed to develop a brotherly relationship, they at least started to tolerate and respect each other in their own way. Inu Yasha inviting his older brother and Sesshoumaru actually accepting an invitation to Inu Yasha’s mating ceremony and thus honoring his choice of mate being one way of showing the progress in their relationship.
Sesshoumaru was never fond of humans but his feelings towards them changed over time thanks to Rin, Kagome and her friends. They all proved their worth in their own way, showing that not all humans were worthless, greedy creatures. Especially Rin and the miko. Rin adored the miko like a mother figure and so Sesshoumaru spent some time in her and the miko’s company whenever he came to visit his ward. Sometimes, if he had a particularly good day, he even spoke a few words with Inu Yasha.
Kagome sighed and let her bow drop to the ground again, placing her shaking hand above her heart.
“I’m sorry Onii-san, but you really scared me. Inu Yasha has been called to help a village with a serpent youkai problem and went together with Miroku. While they were away, a woman from a neighboring village came seeking help in tending to their people who had fallen terribly ill. I did all I could to help them and well, now I’m on my way back.”
“Still, you should not sleep on your own unprotected if you fail to detect any presence. This is foolish. Rin would be most unhappy if something happened to you as would my half-brother.”
She was about to retort something sharp when she noticed his forced stance and the way his hand clutched a dark spot on his otherwise bright haori. She forgot what she wanted to retort, jumped up and started to tug at his haori without thinking, trying to inspect the wound.
“Oh my god, Sesshoumaru, you’re bleeding! What happened?”
Gently, Sesshoumaru pushed her away.
“It is of no consequence; the wound will heal. I underestimated an opponent. A mistake that this Sesshoumaru will not repeat.”
“I know that it will heal but it still looks pretty bad. Please, I can help you. Kaede taught me how to use my reiki to heal wounds. It will heal faster that way.”
Sesshoumaru considered her offer for a moment. It did not surprise him that the miko offered her help to him. In the time he spent with Rin and her, he learned that the miko was unique in everything. Unique in clothing, knowledge, power and even in her stubbornness. If she wanted to help it wasn’t because there was something to gain for her in the process. And the faster he could visit his mother the sooner he could chase this strange youkai.
“Very well”, he finally answered and lowered himself to the ground so that she could tend to his wound.
Kagome knelt next to him. “I will have to touch you to do it”.
Sesshoumaru understood and opened his haori enough for her to expose the wound. Kagome prepared a wet cloth to clean it and to see the exact damage inflicted upon him. Carefully, she removed the blood by gently pressing the cloth to his side.
“Who did this?”, she asked after a while without looking up from his wound.
“I do not know, but I will soon.”
Kagome snorted and put the cloth away before placing her hand carefully above his wound.
“Yeah, I bet that. This could sting a little but remember, I’m not trying to hurt you. So, please, don’t lash out at me or something while I’m healing you.”
Sesshoumaru glared at her for assuming that he was incapable of controlling himself, but she had already closed her eyes in concentration. A Pink light appeared where her hands touched his body and he felt her powers rise. But instead of hurting him like reiki normally would do to a youkai, hers seemed to caress him. Easing the pain while knitting his flesh together. Sesshoumaru felt warm and content at her touch, which surprised him for he rarely felt anything. After a few minutes the feeling subsided as she removed her hands from his person, leaving him cold.
“There, all done”, she said satisfied after inspecting her work.
Sesshoumaru stood. “Thank you, Kagome.”
She smiled up at him from her position on the ground.
“You’re welcome, Onii-san. I’m glad I could help.”
Sesshoumaru walked toward the tree next to her sleeping bag and sat under it, crossing his legs.
“Go back to sleep, miko. In the morning I will escort you to Edo.”
Kagome frowned but collapsed on her bedding nonetheless.
“Thank you, but I don’t want to bother you, I’m fine.”
“No but’s. Now rest.”
Yawning, she complied, too tired to argue with him, and went back to sleep under his watchful eye.
They left early next morning and spend most of the way in comfortable silence. It didn’t take them long to reach Edo.
“So, this is it”, Kagome sighed and turned to him.
“Thank you for escorting me safely back home. Guess you didn’t want your future sister-in-law getting killed. How sweet of you.”
At his silent glare she started to giggle.
“Oh Sesshoumaru, I’m just joking. It’s such a beautiful day and you are no fun. So, are you coming too? You could visit Rin. She would be overjoyed to see you again so soon.”
He ignored her comment and turned his head in the direction of his mother’s castle. He wasted enough time already.
“Another time, miko”, he answered without looking back at her. “This Sesshoumaru has pressing matters that he hast to attend.”
Kagome sighed. “I thought so. Well, see you around then, I guess. And thank you again.”
With one last smile at his back Kagome turned in the direction of the village and began her walk. Sesshoumaru turned again and watched her walk the way down until she reached the border of the village.
“Until next time, Kagome.”
He murmured after her before turning on his heel and disappearing into the forest.
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He could feel her youki shift as he neared the castle. He felt it wrap around himself and then subside again after recognizing him. When he landed on the castle grounds she was already there, waiting for him. Clothed in heavy layers of a dark blue kimono with silvery flower patterns she stood as regal as a woman of her noble position could. Her long silver-white hair was partly pulled up in two ponytails, the rest flowing elegantly behind her. A smirk played around her painted dark red lips while she raised an eyebrow at her unexpected visitor.
“Now, Sesshoumaru, what a surprise. I did not expect you to visit again before the next century. Now, son, tell me could it be that you missed your dear mother?”
Sesshoumaru regarded her with a cold glare.
“Do not play games, mother. This Sesshoumaru came to you because he is seeking information on the Meidou Stone in your possession.”
The woman sighed and pretended to be hurt by his mannerism.
“My dear son, no love left for your dear mother who raised you and cared for you. Always straight to business.” She turned and entered her gardens. Sesshoumaru followed after her, not commenting on her speech. He knew his mother’s games all too well to care. It was her way of annoying him since she was bored and not the fact that she cared about him. She never really did. She was a cold and ruthless demoness. Just like he was a cold and ruthless youkai. She stopped before a sakura tree and outstretched her hand to touch the flower petals carefully with her long, red-painted claws.
“Why do you seek this knowledge, Sesshoumaru? Last time when I used it to return your little human pet from the underworld you did not care. So tell me, why the sudden interest?”, she asked without averting her eyes from the flower between her claws.
“It is not the object itself that raises my interest but rather those who would bother to seek it, especially those related to the cat youkai tribe.”
Sesshoumaru’s mother regarded her son with a thoughtful glance before letting go of the petal and turning completely to him.
“I see”, she only answered before turning again and starting to walk away, leaving her son behind. When she noticed that Sesshoumaru did not immediately follow her, she stopped for a second and regarded him with a quick glance over her shoulder.
“I am going to have dinner. You should join me, Sesshoumaru. It has been some time since I had the opportunity to share a meal. I grow bored of the servants’ constant chatter about nonsense.”
Sesshoumaru sneered. “I have no time for pretended formalities, mother. This Sesshoumaru has a cat youkai to kill.”
Smirking, she walked into her castle without further sparing him a glance and spoke softly, knowing that he could still hear her.
“This Inukari does not care. If you want answers you know where to find your mother.”
And without another word she disappeared inside the castle, leaving her son to his thoughts.
They sat on cushions at a long dining table, his mother sitting in perfect seiza as befitting her status and slowly sipping her cup of tea. They dined in silence. The only noise during their meal was made by the servants carrying different trays and bottles. Sesshoumaru glared again at his mother, waiting for her to finally speak up, but when she did finally speak it was to order two more cups and a bottle of sake. Disbelievingly, Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow at her.
“Mother, stop being ridiculous. I did not come to drink sake with you. I want information and I rather have it now than later.” That statement earned him a heated glare from his mother. She waited for the scared boar youkai servant to pour their cups and handed one silently to him, regarding him coolly. When he did not take the cup immediately from her she hissed and bared her fangs at him.
“Stop being such an insolent pup and do as you are told! If you want the information take the cup.”
Sesshoumaru returned the hiss but took the cup from her hand nonetheless. He hated his mother. He considered just killing her for a split of a second but then he would not gain any information. Dead people could not speak after all. He could of course kill her first and then bring her back with Tenseiga, but he doubted that she would be willing to share her knowledge with him should he indeed kill her, even if only shortly. So reluctantly, he took the cup from her hand and emptied it at once. Inukari smirked, knowing she had won and refilled the cups herself, after emptying hers. They sat like this for another hour without talking before his mother asked innocently about Rin and Jaken.
“Do not pretend to care”, Sesshoumaru answered coolly while sipping at his cup of sake.
She glared at him. “Fine if you insist on playing the pup, be that way. I believe you have been punished enough now.”
Sesshoumaru’s eyebrow twitched at her comment. “Punished? For what reason do you deem it necessary to punish this Sesshoumaru?”
Pretending to be deeply hurt by his actions, she placed a hand over her heart. “Why, for not visiting your mother more often, of course! How can you be so cruel to the woman who gave life to you? Oh, what did I do wrong, to deserve this kind of treatment from my only son!” Her voice started to sound teary but Sesshoumaru did not buy it for a second. He almost rolled his eyes at her. Almost. He was Sesshoumaru and Sesshoumaru did not roll his eyes.
“That is enough, woman.”
Smirking, she returned to a perfect seiza.
“Perhaps then, you should start with what happened. I assume from your questions earlier a cat youkai was seeking knowledge of the Meidou Stone?”
Sesshoumaru nodded at her and told in short words what happened when he met the feline, without revealing his injury and encounter with the miko. That was no business of hers.
“Hmmmm,” Inukari regarded her son with a long, thoughtful glance before questioning him further.
“And this feline youkai could not have, perhaps, mentioned two other objects?”
He considered her question for a moment. Yes, the cat youkai had asked about some objects, but he did not pay attention since he thought the demon beneath himself. His curiosity was only sparked at the mention of the Meidou Stone. But then it was already too late. His mother took his silence as an affirmative and asked again.
“Sesshoumaru, do you know how your father managed to get Tenseiga?”
“Totousai created this sword from father’s fang just as he did with the Tessaiga.”
Sesshoumaru’s mother sneered. “Do you really believe your father to be so invincible, so powerful,l that his fang alone was able to empower a sword to open the gate to hell and restore life? Something so many powerful beings tried to achieve but failed? Your father was powerful, but not that powerful.” She smirked at some memories that only she recalled. “He was not even able to defeat me in a honest battle. Really Sesshoumaru, are you still worshiping your great and terrible father, like a pup?”
Even though he hated being reprimanded by his mother he did not show it and kept his cool demeanor. She did have a point. He never questioned how Totousai managed to create Tenseiga for his father, but he should have. No living being possessed such power. Not even his father. Living beings were not supposed to possess such power, yet he did.
“Perhaps then, mother, you could enlighten me”, he spoke carefully.
Inukari smiled mischievously at her son.
“But with pleasure, my darling son. If you ask so kindly. Are you familiar with the legend of the gods’ tears?”
Sesshoumaru again had to keep himself from rolling his eyes. Why could his mother not just leave her stupid games be and tell him whatever he needed to know.
“If this Sesshoumaru was, he probably would not sit here, having this tiring conversation with you, mother”, he almost spat the last word. Inukari glared sharply at him.
“Fine, be that way. I will tell you anyway, because I am such a good mother and you are such a poor son. Now be quiet and listen, you insufferable pup, for I will not repeat myself.
According to this old legend the sun goddess Amaterasu once fell in love with a human being. This love was scandalous among the gods and they all tried to convince her that it was futile and that she needed to break her bond with the human man or forever leave the godly realm. But Amaterasu could not leave behind her loved one. Not after she discovered that she was carrying the human’s child. The other gods were outraged, especially Susanoo, her brother. The god of the winds and sea, who hated all human kind. After Amaterasu gave birth to her child, Susanoo attacked her human lover, killing him in the process. Afterwards, he moved to kill the child that should not exist, but in that moment, the third sibling appeared.
Tsukiyomi, the god of the moon, came to aid his weakened sister and stopped Susanoo, sending him to the underworld after a long and hard battle. The other gods tried to convince Amaterasu that she should abandon the child, for it never would be part of the godly realm. Even though this child was never supposed to exist none of the other gods wanted to kill an innocent.
Heartbroken, Amaterasu agreed to send her child to safety, where Susanoo could not find it, even if he escaped the underworld. While she kissed it goodbye, she could not stop her tears. She cried for her lost love, her lost child and even for her lost brother who tried to kill her only child. Tsukiyomi, upon seeing his sister so heartbroken, joined in her mourning and also shed his tears. It is said that their pain was so heartfelt and strong that without realizing it the two siblings added their power to their tears. Three of them materialized into stones of great power and were send to the ones that were mourned. The first stone was able to open a gate to the heavenly realm and send to the soul of Amaterasu’s lost love, keeping his soul from the underworld. The second stone was send to Susanoo. It is said to hold the power to open the gateway to hell, where Susanoo resides. Serving as a prison and keeping him from escaping. The third stone is said to hold the power of balance. In the wrong hands it could change the cause of life by shifting the balance of good and evil to whatever side its holder whished. However, this stone is said to have disappeared together with the child and was never seen or heard of again.”
Silence followed her story. Sesshoumaru repeated it a few times in his mind and tried to process what his mother wanted to tell him.
“You mean to tell me”, he started carefully not sure if he was following what she wanted to tell him. It seemed unbelievable. “That these stones truly exist? And that the Meidou Stone is one of them?”, slowly he finished.
His mother nodded and pulled the stone from the chain around her neck.
“Think, son, this stone has the power to open the gate to the underworld. You have seen it with your own eyes and walked this path, not only once. Every time you used Tenseiga you opened the gateway for it is the stone that gave Tenseiga its power.”
Silently, he considered her words.
“How did father acquire it?”
“Your father was always seeking power and when he heard of this legend he wanted to find the stones and possess all the power from all realms. A foolish thought, as he himself learned. He followed clues that he found scattered all across the lands even though I advised him not to. To me, it was a foolish quest, since it was but a legend, but your father proved me wrong. He found the Meidou Stone. He learned that no one was able to gather all stones because no one had all the power needed to accomplish this task. To collect the tear of the underworld a creature of dark energy is needed, but the tear of heavens can be collected solely by creatures of light. As to the tear of the living realm, he never found the answer. But after he learned the true power of the Meidou Stone, he knew that we mortals were not meant to control such power. Instead of seeking the stones he started to protect the one he found.
Over the years many sought to get the Meidou Stone, one of them being Dairan. A powerful leader of the eastern cat youkai tribe. As you know, the cats have once ruled the northern lands, before they were overpowered by the dragons. Dairan was their heir who never got the chance to rule. Since then he sought all sources of power to become stronger to not only reclaim his lands but also all the other. He wanted to be the sole ruler of all. One day, he found your father and demanded the stone. Inu no Taisho tried to reason with him, explaining that this power was not meant for us mortals. They fought over the stone, but your father defeated him. Afterwards, he and Totousai found a way to weaken the stones power by embedding part of it into a sword. This is how Tenseiga was forged. I believe the cat youkai who bothered you could be somehow related to Dairan and trying to end what he started hundreds of years ago.”
Sesshoumaru pulled Tenseiga out of its sheath and regarded it in a new light. It pulsed at the closeness to its other part. The stone seemed to do the same for Inukari closed her hands around the stone before tugging it back under her kimono.
“Hnnn, so this means that this is not Tenseiga’s full potential. What is the true power of the Meidou Stone?”
Sesshoumaru’s mother narrowed her eyes dangerously at her son. “This should not concern you! No living being in this realm is able to control its full power. It can do more than open the gate to hell. It can send souls to hell without the need to touch a living being, reawaken the dead and control them. But more so, it will control you. It is for the better that its power has been split.”
That made him angry. “Do not assume too much, mother. This Sesshoumaru is merely curious. I am not so weak as to take power that is not my own. But by finding the other stones or tears, the feline will eventually come to me.”
The cup in Inukari’s hand fell to the ground with a loud thud, spilling its contents on the polished marbles.
“Did you not listen to me, pup? It is dangerous to seek them! The whole world would be in danger if the artifacts fell into the wrong hands! Besides, son of mine, you cannot even collect the tear of heaven so what will you do?”
Sesshoumaru smirked. A devilish predatory smirk, formed on his face as he thought of a blue-eyed miko that was more than happy to help wherever she was needed. With her help he would be able to collect the stones, lure the cat out and afterwards dispose of them. And if they could not dispose of them he would find a way to keep them safe. His smirk turned into a wide grin, showing his sharp fangs. This time, it was he who grabbed the bottle of sake and refilled their cups handing one to his skeptical mother. “Do not trouble yourself mother, this Sesshoumaru knows exactly what to do.” And with one quick gulp he emptied his cup, sealing his plan.
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This was the first chapter. Please note that the legend of the gods's tears was completely invented by me. There is no historical or mythological background whatsoever appart from Amaterasu, Susanoo and Tsukiyomi beeing indeed gods in japanese mythology. And they are indeed siblings. But that's all! This is my first fanfic in english, so I apologize if you should find any mistakes. I had this idea for some time now and had to finally write it down for it would not leave me alone. If you enjoy reading this story or have suggestions where i could improve it, please leave a review. I really appreciate it!